Mechanism for photographic printing



July 18, 1933. F M, M|| 1,919,030

MEGHANISM FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTING Filed May 20, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet l INVENTOR aM/L VMM July 18, 1933.

F. M. MILLS MECHANISM FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTING Filed May 20, 1931 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 INVENToR Patented July 18, 1933 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE MECHANISM FOR PHOTOGRAPHIC PRINTING Application led May 20, 1931.

My invention relates to mechanism used in the art of photographic printing whereby one or a number of film units bearing type or ornamental characters may be assembled to form a legend of artistic composition, held securely in position and printed by the action of light while in Contact with any material having a light sensitized surface.

The object of my invention is to provide means by which persons possessing no artistic skill are able to do lettering or ornament by grouping type or ornamental characters together and reproducing by photography, so as to dispense with the tedious hand work entailed in making lettering and ornament for show cards, signs. name plates, posters. labels, advertising display and original copy for photo-mechanical reproduction.

A further object of my invention, is to provide an easv means of assembling. providing great latitude in spacing and in artistic arrangement of photogra phic type character units. to obtain eil'ects similar to hand work and producing either negatives. or positives.l which may subsequently be printed bv the aetion of light. upon any desired material having been previously sensitized to light.

I attain this obiect bv using flexible film units of extreme thinness. which may be overlapped. or spaced apart and vet. be brought into perfect contact with the sensitized surface to be printed upon. in a special printing frame that prevents the possihilitv of blurring the sharpness of the print. because the flexible film units are held securely. the blurring which would result from actinic ravs being reflected from the edges of the units, were units of a subst-anti al thickness used instead. is thus avoided.

All these objects are made possible by the mechanism illustrated in the accompanying drawings. in which Fig. 1 represents a film unit, bearing a character on both sides. one obverse and one reverse. the character being opaque so that light cannot be transmitted through it.

Fig. 2 represents a film unit container with the film units in place when not in use.

Fig. 3 represents an assembling bar with Serial N'o. 538,749.

assembled film units to form a word as indicated.

Fig. 4 represents a photographic printing frame with a Wedging bar to hold the character bearing film units against the glass of l5 the frame.

Fig. 5 represents a pressure back for a photographic printing frame.

Fig. 6 represents a sectional end view of printing frame shown in perspective at 0 Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 represents a sectional end view of the pressure back shown in perspective at Fig. 5.

Fig. 8 represents an end view of the wedg- 0| ing bar shown in perspective and in position at Fig. 4.

Fig. 9 represents a photographic printing frame in perspective with an assembling slide bar attached by hinges to one wall of the printing frame.

Fig. 10 represents an end sectional view of the printing frame shown in perspective at Fig. 9.

Fig. 11 represents an end sectional view of the printing frame shown in perspective at Fig. 9 with the pressure back shown at Fig. 12 in place.

Fig. 12 represents an end view of a pressure back having one rounded longitudinal bottom edge.

Fig. 13 represents a photographic print 0btained on sensitized material from a composition of assembled film type units shown at Figs. 3. 4. and 9.

Similar numerals refer to similar parts throughout the several views.

The film unit 1 of a transparent or translucent flexible material such as celluloid has on both its sides an opaque character 2 which prevents the transmission of light. When the film units are not in use they are held in a film container shown at Fig. 2 in any desired alphabetical relation, such a container consisting of a base 3 with a rabbet 4to locate and receive any desired box cover, the base 3 being provided with slots 5 to receive the lower portions of the film units 1 and hold them in a perpendicular position allowing enough of the films 1 to protrude so they may be easily l handled and the characters 2 be easily distinguishable. y

The film units 1 are taken from the container 3 and are assembled in any desired composition in the slot 7 of the assembling bar 6. The assembling bar may be made of any desired ri 'dgmaterial with a groove 7 lined with yielding or resihent or elastic material such as velvet, rubber, felt, etc., to hold the film units 1 lightly while they are being assembled. The composition is then transferred to the printing frame 11 in Fig. 4l and a wedging bar 8, faced with resilient material 12, is pressed in the frame side between the bead 9 and the film units l, interposed between the facing 12 of tlie wedging bar 8 and the glass 10 of the printing frame 11. The film units 1 are then held in place as shown in the end sectional view at Fig. 6. A piece of sensitized material 20 is placed on top of the film units 1 and the pressure back shown at Fig. 7 is brought down in place, the portion 16 of the pressure back fittlng between the walls of the printing frame 11 and the face of the pressure back holding the film units 1 and the sensitized material 20 firmly against the glass 10 when the springs 1 8, are locked in the topmost groove o the printing frame walls. The pressure back is shown in perspective at Fig. 5 and has -two or more springs 18 attached to back 16 by the pivot pins 19. The manner in which the wedging bar 8 holds the film units 1 firmly against the glass 10,;is clearly shown at Fig. 6, and the end sectional view Fig. 7 shows the relat-ion of the springs 18, pins 19 and pressure back 16.

The resilient material 12 is glued or cemented to the face of the wedging bar 8 as shown at Fig. 8 to prevent scratching the film units and to allow for variations in film thicknesses; the springiness of the resilient material under pressure of the wedging bar holding the film units securely in position when they are assembled in the printing frame 11 as shown at Fig. 4.

The film units l may be assembled directly into a hinged assembling bar 6 which has a slot 7 to receive the film units 1 and retain them in properly assembled relation as indicated at Fig. 9l which depicts an alternative design of printing frame 13. The assembling bar is attached to the wall 13 by the hinges 14, the yconstruction being clearly shown in end sectional view at Fig. 10 in which the film unit 1 is held in slot 7 by a lining of resilient material or by the resiliency of the material of which the bai' 6 is composed. The bar 6 is attached by hinges 14 and may be swung up to the position shown at Fig. 9 for assembling the film units, or it may be swung down to tlie position shown at Fig. 11, so the film units 1 will bear against the glass 10 of the printing frame. After the print has been made, the assembling bar 6 is swunpn its hinges 14 to a position as shown at ig. 9 and e film units 1 are replaced with another com osition as desired.

, The pressure back in connection with the film unit assembling bar 6 is shown at Fig. 12 and has a rounded longitudinal lower edge 17 so it will not cut or crease the film units 1 and sensitized material 20 when pressing them into contact when they are assembled in the printing frame 13 shown at Fig. 11. The method of locking the pressure back 16 in place by the springs 18 is shown at` Fi 11. l

fter the assembly shown at Fig. 11 is exposed to light rays penetrating the glass 10 and transparent parts of film units 1 and causing a print to be made on the sensitized material 20, the strip of sensitized material 20 is removed and a finished permanent print as shown at Fig. 13 is obtained after developing and fixing by any of the processes known to the art. The characters 21 being white or transparent against a dark or opaque back ground.

While I show film units bearing a single character, I do not wish to limit my invention to the use of a single letter or ornament, nor do I wish to limit myself to film units of the same size throughout. Obviously, artistic composition could be obtained by using wider or narrower film units than those shown, the size of the film unit may be anything that will fit the printing frame, it may bear ornamental desi s or composite arrangements of figures, etters and ornaments on a single film unit.

While I show printing frames with but one assembling bar, or one wedgin bar, it is apparent that two or more assem ling or Wedging bars may be used, and two or more lines of composition printed at the same time, therefore, I do not wish to limit myself to the single line printing frames shown.

I am aware that prior to my invention, character bearin units have been used to secure prints by p otographic means on light sensitized material. I, therefore, do not claim such a construction broadly; but

I claim:

1. In combination, removable film units bearing characters, a printing frame, an assembling bar attached thereto and forming part of such frame, said bar having a resilient slot to receive and hold said units.

2. In combination, removable film units bearing characters and an assembling bar having a slot lined with resilient material between one fixed wall and a movable wall adapted to receive said film units, substantially as set forth.

3. In combination, a printing frame transparent film units opaque characters thereon, a hinged assembling bar to retain said units and forming part of the printing frame substantially as described.

4. In combination, a photographic printing frame adapted to receive a composition of film units, a removable assembling bar, removable transparent film units bearing opaque characters, a wedging bar to hold film units between a transparent face and a backinn' of opaque material.

In combination, a photographic printing frame having longitudinally slotted walls, a face of transparent material, a pres- -sure back, character bearing film units and a wedging bar to hold the film units against the transparent face in their proper relation and a resilient material between the wedging bar and the film units.

6. In combination, a photographic printing frame, an assembling'bar having a receiving slot along one of the longitudinal sides for the film units and supportingv hinges at the opposite side attached to the top of the side wall of the printing frame, transparent film units bearing characters,.a transpar- -ent face, a pressure back between said unit assembling bar and the opposite wall of the printing frame and locking members independent of the assembling bar to hold the pressure back against sensitized material interposed between the transparent film units and the pressure back, substantially as described.

7. In combination, a photographic printing frame having) a slotted and hinger film un1t assembling ar and retaining member attached to one of its walls and forming a supplementary wall when in printing position, a pressure back interposed between the assembling bar and the op osite printing frame wall, pressure back loc ing means fitting slots in the walls, a transparent face, character bearing units interposed between sensitized material abutting against the pressure back, said character bearing units being held against the transparent printing frame face and the sensitized face of the light sensitive material by the pressure back.

8. In combination, a photographic printing frame having two main longitudinal walls and a supplementary hinged wall combining a film unit retalnlng slot, a pressure back fitting between the fixed wall and the supplementary hinged wall having a rounded lower longitudinal edge, suitable locking means engaging slots in the said fixed walls, character bearing film units, sensitized material between the pressure back and the reverse side of the film units and a transparent printing frame face against the obverse side of the film units.

9. In combination, a photographic printing frame having two fixed longitudinal walls, a hinged film unit retaining bar attached to one of the fixed walls and acting as an extension thereto, a pressure back having a lower longitudinal edge rounded, suitable means for locking the pressure back between the walls, slots to receive the pressure back locking members independent of the hinged extension, a transparent face, character bearing units fitting a slot in the hinged assembling bar and sensitized material interposed between the pressure back and character bearing film units resting against the said transparent printing frame face, substantially as described.

FRANK M. MILLS. 

